Ageing Mindfully
Life is full of surprises, that’s part of its fun!
That moment, Have you reached it yet?
You look back, you turn round and look ahead, and suddenly you realise that you now have fewer years ahead of you than behind. What comes to mind?
Mindful Ageing
As we all age, alongside all the new opportunities, delights and discoveries that may lie ahead, there is inevitably, an element of suffering and uncertainty too. For many of us, change can be slow and steady as the years unfold. For others it may be sudden, dramatic and life-changing too.
It can be helpful to consider, that we spend our whole lives ‘crossing thresholds’ – perhaps unexpected financial, practical, physical, emotional and spiritual ‘thresholds’ - thresholds that sometimes make us question how we feel about how our lives have unfolded up until this point - who we have become, - our sense of identity, - who we really are, and how we relate to ourselves and those around us. This may feel disconcerting, alarming even and can be a significant source of stress and anxiety to so many people.
When we pause and reflect on all this… we may feel a surge of complex emotions: excited, fearful, confused, sad, isolated, resentful, or regretful, also hopeful optimistic, and content, - separately – and all at once too.
I have always believed in human beings’ innate goodness. Mindfulness, underpinned by kindness and compassion, teaches us that, however elusive this may seem at times, we all have the capacity to trust in and connect with our inner goodness and to enable it to flourish, regardless of circumstances. Through being awake to the possibilities of life, while exploring some of the obstacles that can hinder us from taking advantage of them, we learn to see more clearly what is really going on, and to support ourselves from within when things get tough.
How can we cultivate the necessary resilience to support ourselves through some of life’s most challenging experiences?
My approach, as a compassion-based mindfulness mentor and teacher is to guide and support you as you develop the knowledge, skills, courage and capacity to mesh cognitive and experiential mindfulness training into your everyday lives.
This often uncovers some of the subtle and not so subtle behavioural patterns and tendencies that may have been putting obstacles in your way. If you choose to work with me, you will gradually learn how to view your difficulties or challenges, not as enemies to be suppressed and ‘got rid’ of’, but as welcome portals and opportunities for insight, healing and wholeness.
When we do this, we naturally become kinder, wiser and more compassionate towards ourselves, our families, our communities, humanity and the world, which in turn, leads to us finding inner freedom, clarity and peace.